(Confessions of a British writer)

Submissions call for new anthology – Revolutions!

We at The Manchester Speculative Fiction Group are publishing an anthology to showcase speculative fiction with a Mancuian theme. The anthology, titled “REVOLUTIONS” will contain a mix of science-fiction, fantasy, and horror fiction. Submissions are currently open, and anyone over 18 years of age can submit. You don’t need to be a member of the group. We welcome submissions from anywhere and anyone (see rules below).

The theme is Manchester. All stories must be linked in some way to the city of Manchester, England. In all honesty, we really haven’t worked out anything beyond that. We’re hoping that a clear link between all the stories chosen will reveal itself. You don’t have to live here, but each story should have a flavour of the real Manchester.

Manchester is more than just a name. Like it or loathe it (or both!), it’s a place – a very wet place – full of lots of different people. In the Nineteenth century it was one of the biggest, if not the biggest, cotton mill town in the world. The city is still criss-crossed by canals where barges used to tow cotton to the factories. Its damp climate was specifically chosen so that the cotton remained moist. Manchester was also the scene of several historical incidents such as the terrible Peterloo Massacre, plagues, and the invasions of both Bonnie Prince Charlie and William Wallace. Dig a little further, and you can find traces of the original Roman town. The city has changed a lot in recent years. Its fame as a city of football is worldwide. The British Broadcasting Corporation is based here. It’s also one of the most multicultural cities in the United Kingdom.

But why am I doing your job for you?

Dig deep into the inkwells of your imagination to provide us with stories of thrills, technological marvels, alternate realities and urban fantasies. Does some of this sound contradictory? Yes? Well, that’s the point! If in doubt, write it out.

Please read ALL of the guidelines BEFORE you submit:

1. Closing Date

Submissions window is from now until 1st May 2015.

2. Eligibility

Anyone over 18 can submit from anywhere in the world.

3. Theme

All submissions must be in a speculative genre (sf/f/h/df/uf/slipstream) and must have some link to the area that is Greater Manchester, England. The final decision about whether a story is to be included in the anthology will be the editors’ within their absolute discretion. Don’t think you can just change the place names in your old stories. We notice things like that!

4. What we give you

£10 payment per story accepted. Payment is by Paypal.

5. What we get

First Print Rights and Electronic Publishing Rights for 12 months. We reserve the right to archive your story online indefinitely. Please bear in mind that most publications will not publish pieces that have been published in print, eBook, or on the web, so for all intents and purposes after your work is published by us it can only be marketed as a reprint, which severely limits the number of markets that will accept it, and drastically reduces the pay rate it can receive. It is up to you, the author, to decide if this is what you want to do.

6. Word Count

Short stories of between 1,500 to 6,000 words. Please query for anything longer. Please do not send us your novels or poems. We only want short stories. Honest.

Please send only one story until you receive a response. You may then submit another story, and so on.

No poetry or non-fiction.

7. Distribution

The anthology will be made available in e-book format via Smashwords and print copies will be available as POD. Tentative publication date is the second half of 2015.

8. Format

Stories should be sent as Word attachments to msfantho [at] yahoo [dot] com. In the subject line please put: “SUBMISSION: [Story Title] by [Your Name]”. Submissions should follow Shunn formatting. If in doubt, click on the link!